Barry Stokes

Louisville, KY

Coach Barry earned his IRONMAN® Coaching Certification in February 2016, his USAT Level I Coaching Certification in 2006, his USAT Level II Coaching Certification in 2010, his USAT Youth & Junior Coaching Certification in 2011 and his USAT&F Level I Coaching Certification in 2009.

Coach Barry ran the first of his more than 33 (and still counting) Derby Festival ½ Marathons in the spring of 1977 and completed the first of many marathons the fall of 1977. He jumped into the sport of triathlon in the late 1990's. To his surprise and delight, he won a lottery slot to the Hawaii Ironman® in 2000 and finished his first Ironman® distance race when crossing the finish line in Hawaii that year. He has since navigated six additional Ironman® distance races including Korea and has done several (and still counting) Half-Ironman® distance races since the late 1990's.

Since 2006 Coach Barry has helped people like you accomplish their endurance based athletic goals. The goal may be to learn to ride a bike, run a half-marathon, climb Mt. Rainer, race a mountain bike or complete an Olympic or Ironman® distance triathlon. What ever the goal, Coach Barry keeps it Fresh, Fun & Focused!

In February 2011 Coach Barry ended a successful 35+ year career in Orthopaedic Medical Device Sales and Distribution by retiring from the industry. On March 1, 2011 Coach Barry became a full time triathlon & endurance athlete coach and is pursuing his passion.

Barry Stokes is a proud supporter of the TriEqual mission. TriEqual is a group of women and men dedicated to fairness, progress, and equality in the sport of triathlon.

I am the father of two daughters and have two grand–daughters and feel strongly about the TriEqual mission of equality – the same for men and women!

– Barry Stokes

Barrys Training Articles

Questions When Selecting a Triathlon Coach

Meet face-to-face with the Coach; Sit down with the coach to discuss your goals and their current schedule. Can the Coach match the Athlete’s wants and needs? where does the Athlete fit in? Is the Coach willing to meet for a face-to-face sit-down interview? Continued…

Why Should I Hire a Coach? – Part 2

A Barry's Coaching athlete is quoted as saying; I know how to workout, but I don’t know where, when and how to fit workouts into my life to get the best from each effort. That’s what I hired you to do.Continued…

Why Should I Hire a Coach? – Part 1

A triathlon coach plays a wide variety of roles in their Athlete’s training life. The first part of this 2-part article will hit on a few of the roles a competent Coach plays throughout the training and race season. Continued…

What is SRT & SSC and How Do They Impact Me?

A couple of months ago I wrote about the importance of knowing your Sweat Rate and included a calculation formula. Since then I've had any number of athletes tell me they are heavy sweaters and need to supplement with salt. I ask if they know their sweat rate (amount of fluid lost through sweat per hour of exercise) and their Sweat Sodium Concentration (SSC) and of course they have no idea. Continued…

Hydration & Sweat Rate

Hydration is extremely important. The body is approximately 60% water. An athlete who is not fully hydrated is forcing his or her body to work at less than full capacity, especially during physical activity. Continued…

Race Day Checklist

We have created a race day checklist that covers just about everything you will need for your first triathlon. We have also included a couple tips. continued…

Calculating Your Sweat Rate

Sweat rate is KEY to understanding your body and how much fluid you require. Once you know your fluid loss, over DIFFERENT temperatures, then you know how much you need to drink per hour to stay hydrated. continued…

Finding Your Max Aerobic Heart Rate

To find your maximum aerobic training heart rate, there are two important steps. continued…

Heart Rate vs. RPE Conversion Chart

Heart Rate Calculations

There are a number of different ways to calculate your maximum heart rate and heart rate zones. continued…

Visualization: A Critical Aspect of Improved Training and Racing

Visualization has many names: guided imagery, mental rehearsal, mediation -- no matter the term, the basic techniques and concepts are the same. Generally speaking, visualization is the process of creating a mental image of what you want to happen, how you want to feel and aid your ability to focus and relax. continued…

New Year, New Goals, New You

Regardless of our hopes and dreams for the New Year we need to establish goals. Short, Medium and Long terms goals. continued…

…The best decision I made in my road to the Ironman was connecting with BarryS Coaching and starting a coaching relationship. Their training plan was intense but tailored to help me overcome my weaknesses and maximize my strengths. They provided the type of attention and advice necessary so that I felt strong and ready when I toed the start line for the first time. They…turned me into a real triathlete. I'll always be grateful to the great people at BarryS Coaching for helping me achieve my dream of becoming an IRONMAN.

– Julio D.

Simply the Best Coach and Coaching Team around: BarryS Coaching Barry Stokes. Couldn't have done my IM 70.3 with out him!!!!

– B.A.J.

2015 was amazing. Your coaching made it possible for me exceed my goals. I cannot thank you enough.